Vince Cable: referendum on EU is horribly irrelevant

A referendum on Britain's membership of the European Union is "horribly
irrelevant" at a time of upheaval, Vince Cable has said, as
backbenchers accuse the Prime Minister of "aluminium guarantees" after
hinting at a vote in or after 2015.

Vince Cable describes an EU referendum as 'horribly irrelevant' at a time of upheavalPhoto: PA

"Reopening a big debate about Britain being in or out the European Union and the referendum associated with it is horribly irrelevant at a time of upheaval taking place in Europe," the Business Secretary told Sky News, adding it would cause "unhelpful uncertainty".

Conservative backbenchers have accused the Prime Minister of offering "jam tomorrow" and "aluminium guarantees" after he raised the prospect of a referendum on the nature of Britain's relationship with the European Union in an article in the Sunday Telegraph.

Earier today William Hague said Britain will not be able to have a referendum on Europe until the debt crisis has been sorted out.

The Foreign Secretary said there may be a "powerful case" for a referendum but the decision cannot be taken until Europe has decided whether it wants a closer political union.

The Prime Minister has repeatedly said he is not in favour of a straightforward question on whether Britain should be in the EU.

But he raised the possibility that the British people could be asked whether they want a looser relationship with Europe at or after the next election.

If the Conservative Party makes an election promise to distance itself from Europe, a general election could be enough to decide the issue, he suggested.

Mr Hague this morning insisted the Conservative Party has not changed its position.

"We want to have the chance to find out whether we can have a better relationship with Europe," he told the BBC's Andrew Marr Show. "We want people to have their say when they have a real choice in front of us.

"The time to decide in a referendum is when we know how Europe's going to develop and when we know whether we're going to get a better relationship."

Douglas Alexander, the shadow foreign secretary, suggested the Prime Minister is doing more to manage his own eurosceptic backbenchers than act in the interest of the UK.

More than 100 Conservative MPs wrote to Mr Cameron last week demanding that Britain re-negotiates its relationship with the EU.

Influential eurosceptic backbencher Mark Pritchard said Tory grassroots were "fed up of aluminium guarantees" and insisted there should be a referendum during the current parliament.

"Once again, when it comes to Europe, it's always jam tomorrow. But tomorrow may never come," he said.

Tory MP John Baron, who organised the letter, told BBC Radio 4's The World This Weekend: "I welcome the fact he is now talking about a referendum, but you will notice he hasn't promised one and that he is justifying that position by suggesting now is not a good time for an in-out referendum.

"That's not what we have called for in our letter. We have simply called for a commitment to be put on the statute book in this parliament for a referendum in the next parliament."

Conservative eurosceptic and former Cabinet minister John Redwood said: "We would like to get on with it. We know already what powers we want to get back.

"We need to disengage from some of the power-grab that is now under way as they desperately try to buttress their currency.

"The deal Britain should offer them is we will not get in their way if they are determined to move to political union and to very expensive transfers to prop up the banks, but Britain wants to move in the opposite direction at the same time."

Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, Mr Cameron says that Britain is in danger of getting swamped by EU legislation and bureaucracy which he would like to see scrapped. He makes clear for the first time that changes will need the “full-hearted support of the British people” down the line and adds: “For me the two words 'Europe’ and 'referendum’ can go together.”

Mr Cameron’s landmark move comes as Liam Fox, the former defence secretary, prepares to up the stakes by calling for an immediate renegotiation of Britain’s relationship with the EU. If other member states fail to back this solution, Dr Fox believes, there should be a referendum with the government recommending pulling the UK out of the EU.